Cables for high-fidelity audio systems typically transmit complex, multi-frequency, broad-band signals which effectuate the reproduction of intricate and detailed sounds. The premier goal of a high-fidelity sound system is to reproduce sound just as it was recorded. When an audiophile is satisfied that the highest quality audio components have been obtained attention is turned to the cable used for interconnection of these components.
It has long been known that signal distortion can occur in an audio transmission cable. This can be due to effects caused by electrical interference emitted by adjacent equipment such as television sets and cables and computer equipment including CPU's and monitors. Various shielding formats have been developed, such as co-axial cable formats, to reduce signal distortion from these sources and others.
Another distortion-causing problem found in audio interconnect cables is the so-called "skin effect" occurring with broad-band audio signals transmitted through multiple conductor cables. Prior art cables with multiple conductors exhibit an effect whereby high-frequency components of the audio signal tend to propagate toward conductors around the periphery of the cable while low-frequency components of the audio signal tend to propagate toward conductors in the center of the cable. The overall effect, thought to be caused by electromagnetic effects of signals in the periphery of the cable, results in signals around the periphery of the cable traveling faster than signals traveling along the center of the cable. This phenomenon results in a time distortion of the signal as high-frequency components arriving first at the destination followed by the low-frequency components which started at the same time as the high-frequency components. As a consequence, the signal arriving at the destination is distorted from the original signal.
Another problem found in audio cables is excessive impedance. Impedance, in audio cable, can come from the inherent resistance of the wire and the material it is constructed from as well as the inductive effects of the cable which derive significantly from the geometric configuration of the cable elements.
What is needed is a cable which is highly resistant to externally induced distortion, which minimizes the distortion caused by "skin-effect" and which can be configured to minimize internal impedance in the cable.